Sheffield Wednesday primed for Bromley blitz, hammer and housery
Sheffield Wednesday welcome Bromley this afternoon as the two sides meet for the very first time.
A direct and physical Bromley side will seek to continue their remarkable up-and-up story by taking three points at Hillsborough this afternoon - with Sheffield Wednesday prepped for the challenge.
That’s according to Owls boss Henrik Pedersen, whose transitional outfit will be faced with an in-your-face battle against one of English football’s greater success stories in recent years. Wednesday appear to be expecting something on an onslaught from their visitors, who will fancy the occasion of overcoming a divisional big boy. It is something they have made a habit of doing having taken back-to-back promotions from the National League.
Wednesday’s difficult recent history of defending set pieces will come into question once more and it will be up to the Owls to direct the clash how they would prefer with local authority having been advised of a possible crowd of around 30,000.
“If you look at Bromley and you see not only the games in League Two but also their first two games, they have top quality in the direct game, the second ball and the set pieces,” Pedersen said. “We have struggled in the set pieces, so this fight will be a big fight tomorrow. But I can see now with Matt (Hamshaw, assistant coach) in as the head of set pieces, I can see that we are growing in the offensive. I see more and more patterns with this.
“We saw in the last game that we conceded too easily and we can speak about structure or individual, but here we want to improve and we have to improve as we want to be a top team at set pieces. We are working very hard for this and this will be one of the tests tomorrow.”
In the quarter century since Wednesday exited the Premier League, Bromley have risen from the Isthmian League Division One South, the equivalent standard to that currently played by Hallam FC and Matlock Town. Though their progress in the last few seasons has been rapid, theirs is a success built over time. That rise has been accelerated by the management of Andy Woodman and the goalscoring exploits of club legend Michael Cheek - who himself was playing in division three of the Colchester & East Essex League as recently as 2010.
The reigning League Two champions, Bromley have added Championship figures George Saville and Mickel Miller to their squad this week, but the expectation will be that Wednesday - star-studded in comparison - should be able to overcome their visitors. As Darren Moore’s Owls side found in their infamous trip to Forest Green those years ago, football can offer results that won’t be easily forgotten.
“First of all, we have a big, big respect for what Bromley have done,” Pedersen said. “They have done amazing and they have a fantastic clarity in the way they have done it in the last years. It is a little bit similar to Bradford, with a strong and physical team... It will be a big challenge tomorrow to fight with them on the things they want to bring through on the game. I am looking forward to this test and I have a big belief that we can compete very well against this.”
Though clearly a team that brings its own brand of difficulties, one of the headline-grabbing characteristics of Bromley’s approach in recent years has been an intense and in-your-face personality both on and of the pitch, with Woodman and his backroom staff known for their animation in the technical area. Asked whether he and his coaching staff were primed for whatever might come their way from the right this afternoon, Pedersen grinned.
“I am really ready,” he said. “I am ready to have a good fight and another intensive game. There will be a lot of long balls, second balls - how do we handle this? There will be a lot of time that we are on the ball - how do we be positive, how are we proactive, how do we bring intensity and verticality on the ball? How do we bring our re-press against Bradford and Wolverhampton where we were very, very strong in that part of the game?
“It will be a test on many levels. We have had a very strong training today and there is a fantastic spirit in the group and a big belief. We are all looking forward to another home game.
“It will be a tough fight from the first minute. We know in League One you have to deserve every centimetre and every point. Tomorrow we have to do the same. The basics always come first, we have to fight as a basic and then we have to bring our strength into the game and make it to our advantage. Everything starts always with the basic and here we have to be tough and top tomorrow.”